The number of people with diabetes in England is expected to rise from 3.1 million to 4.6 million between 2010 and 2030, but, backed by research that regular golfers can live up to five years longer than non-golfers and funded by Sport England’s £5.8m Get Healthy Get into Sport Fund, Headlam Hall Hotel and Golf Club, Roseberry Grange Community Golf Club, Barnard Castle Golf Club and Ramside Golf Club are offering ‘Move into Sport’ courses, which start from just £2 a session, and encourage people to give golf a try and discover its health and social benefits.

“If you’re currently not active, overweight or have a family history of cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes, Move into Sport courses have been designed with you in mind,” said a spokesman. “Try out a new sport at a level you can manage with people at the same level as you. Receive advice, coaching and support to help keep you motivated.”

Gary Player, who is trying to cut rates of diabetes around the world. Image by Keith Allison

Meanwhile, Player, 78, who won nine majors during his career and was recently filmed during the Open Championship stating that he completes 1,300 sit ups every day, said his mission in life is to stop the global increase in Type 2 diabetes.

Player, who follows a mainly vegetarian diet, said: “I have a passion to save lives. Thirteen percent of the world is now obese. We talk about wars, the number of people dying from diabetes and cancer and heart attacks – in comparison, the numbers killed in wars are insignificant, but nobody cares about health or exercise.

“I don’t know why only one out of 20,000 people take exercise and has a proper diet. How can governments allow it?

“My advice to fellow menfolk is every day to take your wife by the hand and go for a brisk 30 minutes walk, or get yourself a dog, they demand to be exercised!